Ugh- Oswaldâs going to rot in off-the-rack hell for the way he treats that little boy. In all likelihood, Sofiaâs going to join him there. On the positive side: this is terrible to watch, but it is in keeping with what was said about Oswald becoming âmore depravedâ, and Iâm certainly happy to see that Sofiaâs a complete monster. So⊠good work on this characterization⊠Gotham writers? It feels so weird to say that!
@rhavewellyarnbag  Oswald is treating Martin not as a child, but as a small adult. Yes, he should know better. I wonder, though-if thatâs how Oswald was treated, or if he had to act as adult at an inappropriately young age.
Why is Martin crying? Because Oswald has frightened him, or hurt his feelings; or, because heâs already working for Sofia and knows heâs going to betray Oswald?
Another thought: At the dinner, why did Pyg select Martin to use as a hostage, rather than any of the other children? Without inside information, how did he know that Martin was special to Oswald?
Sorry to butt in on your conversation, but your recent posts about Oswaldâs relationship with Martin and the light it might shed on his relationship with Gertrud has just been fascinating to me, and I wanted to chime in here because this thought occurred to me as well. Like, Gertrud and Oswaldâs relationship is weird on multiple levels, but one of them is the way it sort of collapses age? Is that the word I want? From the scenes we get of them in season 1 it seems like Oswald occupies several roles for his mother simultaneously. She obviously treats him like heâs still a young child in several scenes (the bath, talking about bullies), but sheâs also jealous of imaginary women when he disappears for days, treating him more like a lover or husband. And then we see him having to comfort and humor her several times, in a reversal of the parent-child dynamic. So yeah, I definitely get the sense that in some ways, Gertrud never wanted him to grow up, and in others, he was forced to grow up too early. (Related to that, I always wonder when he started having to work to support them both? Gertrud doesnât seem well enough to have been consistently employed. Do you think he finished high school?)
(I hope Iâm not coming off as excusing Oswaldâs treatment of Martin, btw. Itâs super gross, but also very intriguing as to what it says about his own childhood.)
This gives me so many feels, seeing it like this, all laid out, and just, fucking ED! You could have had him, so easily. Oswald was giving himself to you, was willing to sacrifice his *life* for yoursâand for someone as selfish and self-centred as Oswald thatâs justâŠhuge, and unbelievable.Â
And now, itâs painful to watch each instance where he denies Ed, each where he restrains himself, because the longing is still there, this internal struggle against what he desperately wants and his pride and tendency towards violent retribution for even the smallest (even imagined) slight. Shit, even when he starts getting antagonistic and snarky post-thaw, it smacks of a defense mechanism. Protect himself and make Ed feel as lost as Oswald did when Ed broke his heart.
Ed, if you need any further proof of Oswaldâs continued deep and abiding love, itâs his indulgence of your antics, and your continued survival in Gotham.